Spanish Charles III pistareen, silver coin (1776, 2 Real)

This whole silver coin is known as a head pistareen. Pistareens were minted in Spain and were 20% lighter that Spanish colonial coins (minted in South America). This coin shows the profile of King Charles III of Spain. On the reverse of the coin is the letter "R," while to the right is the number "2," indicating the denomination, Reales 2. Below the R is the mintmark---a crowned letter "M" for Madrid. Below the 2 are the initials "PJ" for the assayers Pedro Cano and Juan Bautista San Faury (Pellicer I Bru 1997). Assayers determined the proper fineness of silver and weight in coin production.